Sign holder



Filed May 23, 1952 I mumlh u lmLmmlHll,

Patented Nov. 15, 1932 UNETEB STATES JPATE ROBERT W. SCHWAB, OF ATLANTA,GEORGIA, ASSIGNOR- T0 SOUTHERN SPRING BED COMPANY, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA,A CORPORATION OF GEORGIA sren HOLDER 7 Application filed May 23,

The present invention relates to sign holders or stands for the displayof advertislng cards or the like and particularly to the type of cardholder or card display device which is designed and intended to standerect upon a floor or sidewalk.

Many types of such display card holding devices have heretofore beendesigned or suggested and put into use, but the present inventioncontemplates an improved article of manufacture of this class, by meansof which a card may be firmly supported in the desired position andwhich is at the same t1me ornamental in appearance, simple andinerpensive to construct, and light in weight, without at the same timebeing unstable. In fact, a sign holder constructed in accordance withthe present invention has a maximum of stability for a minimum weight.The various elements which go into its construction are of simpledesign, the assembly of these elements may be accomplished with greatrapidity and small expense, and the display cards are furthermore sosupportd in position that removal and replacement of one display card byanother may be easily effected without disassembling any of the majorparts of the holder.

A preferred embodiment'of the holder is disclosed in the accompanyingdrawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the holder showing a display cardpositioned therein;

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fi ure 1, to a larger scale andpartly broken away; and

Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3 of ure 1.

Essentially the sign holder includes a base and a card holding frame,the frame being rigidly secured to the base and preferably comprisingthe means for securing the separated portions of the base together.

The base comprises spaced parallel members 10 similar in form andconstruction.

Fig-

Each of these members 10 is fabricated of ametallic channel member, theend portions of whlch are curved downwardly, as shown, so

1932.- Serial No. 613,026. u

that the end surfaces comprise floor engaging surfaces, the main orcentral portions of said members being horizontally disposed. Basemembers so constructed are attractive in appearance, eflicient'in'use'assign supporting members, and may be easily and cheaply fabricated.

The card supporting portion of the display stand comprises twovertically disposed onepiece members 11, each fabricated of a narrowband or strip of metal and each having the 1 form of an inverted U, thestems or legs of which are parallel and closely spaced, the innersurfaces of these stemsdefining between them elongated slots. The lowerends of the stems or legs are turned outwardly to provide flange-likeportions 11 which are secured, respectively, to the base members 10 byany suitable means, as by welding, riveting, or by bolts such asindicated at 12.

Cross tying and sign supporting'elements V are indicated at 13, theseelements being parallel and substantially horizontally disposed, and theends of each element being positioned within the slots defined by thestems of members 11, one elementhaving its ends received. within thetops of these slots and the other within the bottoms of the'slots.Elementsl3 are preferably channel-like in cross-section, having mutuallyfacing grooves which are 'adaptedto-receive and retain the parallelupper and lower edges of a display card or sign indicated at 14.Advantageously elements 13 are substantially U-shaped in cross section,and it is highly desirable to have the upper element 13 in the form ofan inverted U so that the outside surfaces of its ends may fit closelyagainst the inside surfaces ofthe upper ends of the slots defined by themembers 11. Elements 13 may be rigidly secured to members 11 in anysuitable manner, and I have found that a very strong and rigidconstruction is realized when elements 13 are welded to members 11. Inthe drawing two of these welds are indicated at 15, 15.

The card 14 is adapted to be inserted laterally through the slot definedby one member 11, the lower edge of this card resting within the groovein the lower element 13 and the upper edge within the groove defined bythe upper element 13. The four edges of the card the inner surfaces ofthe tops of the slots in are thus hidden from View and well supportsaidmembers.

ed by the frame. Preferably I provide limit- In testlmony whereof Ihereunto aflix my ing stops 16, 16 in one of the slots to limitsignature.

movement of the card in one direction, the ROBERT W. SCHWAB.

cards being inserted through. the opposite slot and moved into contactwith these. stops.

In addition to stops 16, I preferably employ a member 17, such, forinstance, as a cotter pin, which is adapted to be passed through 7registering apertures 18 formed in the stems or legs of the oppositesupporting member 11.

This pin or locking device (which may be of any type) is placed in theoperative position shown after a card has been inserted. and the soeffect is to lockthe card in position. It may be readily removed,however, whenever it is desired to remove one display card oradvertisement and replace it by another.

20 A sign holderconstructed in accordance with the present invention isseen to comprise only six principal parts, i. e., two base members, twovertical members, and two cross tying and card supporting members. These7,

parts are fabricated from commercial stock so with a minimum of cuttingand shaping operations and may be easily secured together into one solidintegral structure. The resulting stand or holder is pleasing to theeye,

3Q sturdy, and may be constructed at minimum cost for an article of thischaracter.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is: V

a 1. As an article of manufacture, a sign 100 holder of the typedescribed including, in combination, spaced base members having floorengaging portions and a frame affixed thereto for supporting a fiatdisplay card in 0 such manner that it may be readily removed, 7 105 saidframe having two. vertically disposed one-piece members each having theform of an inverted U, the stems or legs of which define between them anarrow vertical slot, the

5 bottoms of said stems having substantially horizontal portionsprojecting outwardly and secured to said base members, and two crosstying and sign supporting elements disposed substantially horizontally,one such element 7 having its ends positioned within the slots of saidmembers at the tops thereof and the other having its ends positionedwithin said slots at the bottoms thereof, the said ends of the elementsbeing rigidly secured to said members and said elements having mutuallyfacing continuous grooves formed therein and adapted to receive andretain, respectively, the upper and lower edges of a display cardinserted laterally into said frame through one of said slots.

i 2. The combination set forth in claim 1 in which the upper cross tyingand sign supportin element has the shape, in cross-section, of aninverted U, the outer surfaces of M which, at the ends, make closecontact with

